This chapter was a bugger to write. Who knew that Darth Vader could be such a complex character?
Locking his repulsorlift unit into hover mode, the stormtrooper sapper deliberately didn't look at the mass of metal above him but instead started to clear away the debris in front of him. The other troopers in his squad were stationed well back to avoid the falling pieces, with the exception of the black-clad and cloaked member of their group.
After removing the outside layer of junk, an entry hole became visible, showing that a piece of the missile had indeed been flung up to the Jawa's junk pile by the warhead detonating against the hangar door, just as the simulations had predicted. Carefully, the sapper pulled the loose pieces out to better see the big object that the missile fragment had punched through. Normally, he'd take some images and measurements of the object to plug into a stress model so that he could cut it apart safely, but with Darth Vader impatiently standing below… The sapper took the laser cutter from his tool holder, reached in and began to carefully cut through the large piece of metal.
Attaching a motion alarm to the remaining metal, he flicked on his light to look through the enlarged hole. He put away the laser cutter and pulled out an extendable manipulator - there was no way he was going to reach through that hole with his arm - and used it to pull out more scrap, some of which took a bit more effort to shift than he expected and there were some unhappy sounds from the pile - and the motion alarm - as he worked them free.
There. Glinting with reflected light, the lumpy and twisted, broken, studded ring that was his target was wedged firmly into the side of what appeared to be a piece of keel frame, which - the sapper unhappily noted - appeared to be forming some of the central support for the whole pile of scrap. A quick check with the hand-held spectrometer confirmed the ring fragment to be of the same material as the other pieces they recovered, then the sapper took the laser cutter and - aiming carefully - began to melt away some of the keel frame that the ring fragment had embedded itself into.
He had nearly finished the last of the cuts when the motion alarm's beeps began to grow more insistent and the whole pile let out a groan of deforming metal. The sapper hurriedly put the cutter away and grabbed the manipulator, tractoring one end to the ring fragment as he wrapped the loop on the other end around his arm. The motion alarm's beeps merged into one shrill shriek as the pile shuddered, and the sapper fumbled for the repulsorlift controls as debris bounced off his armour. Throwing the unit into reverse, he felt pain shoot through his arm as the force transferred along it as he briefly looked up at the mass above him -
He had to do a double-take to confirm it. The huge agglomeration of metal above him was moving upwards?
He was dumbfounded for a moment, then he gradually looked down. There the Dark Lord stood, one hand upraised as if supporting the whole pile - and looking unfazed about it, as if the whole mass weighed less than a gram.
"Do not rush, Trooper," Vader's voice rumbled through his com. "This piece is vital to solving the murders of the Reprisal's crew." The trooper nodded jerkily - still stunned by the casual display of power - and turned back to the task of retrieving the pesky piece of alien missile drive.
Tatoo I and II were at their zenith and sane creatures had long since scurried for cover from the merciless heat and light. In the Jundland Wastes, however, there were two beings that didn't care, and not everyone was sure about their sanity either.
The first was a Tusken Raider undergoing a ritual to advance in status in his tribe, and he sat motionless atop a high spire of rock, indifferent to the heat, sand and wind. He was not indifferent, however, to the strange sounds growing in intensity from the canyons below, and he suddenly moved with surprising quickness, unslinging a rifle and aiming it at the fast-moving, black-clad object in the depths of the canyon, only to have an unseen force wrench the rifle barrel around and he only saved himself from a long fall by re-slinging the rifle and grabbing onto the rock beneath him with both hands.
The other uncaring creature, having stopped himself from being shot with a flicker of Force power, now refocused all his attention on the winding canyons and gunned the throttle of the speeder bike even further. Ordinary people would have marvelled at how the rider managed to anticipate the twists and turns of the canyons perfectly, and Sith and Jedi alike would have marvelled at how in tune Darth Vader was with the Force.
Even as a Jedi, nobody had quite understood Vader's skill at and apparent need to fly. He himself had long realised that flying was when he felt most at peace with himself and when he could open himself up to the Force in full, and he relished the power flowing through him as he shot through the narrow passages at speeds which would have resulted in the destruction of any other pilot.
Presently, though, he felt the tug of the Force drawing him to a particular location and he began to gradually climb, leaving the narrow canyons for the even narrower ridges and beginning to slow down as his mood began to blacken once more. Finally, he came to a small dwelling perched atop a cliff and he took a moment after parking and getting off the speeder bike to confirm his suspicions in the Force. The resulting surge of anger at how Obi-Wan Kenobi had hidden from him for so long was tempered only at his satisfaction of finally killing him on the Death Star, nearly three standard months ago and his dark form seemed to leach the light from the air as he strode towards the dwelling.
The inside was dark and cool - just as a well-designed Tatooine dwelling should be in the heat of midday - and neatly ordered, showing that the former occupant hadn't made a too-hasty departure but had known he was going to be gone for a while. Vader stepped into the middle of the main room and paused, his respirator making the only sound in the place, as he reached out with black tendrils of the Force.
Some…thing… was resisting his probes, he soon realised, something that had the taint of his former master about them, and he directed his rage at Kenobi into his Force probe. The resistance finally crumbled and following the Force, he stepped towards a case that was partially hidden behind cushions and rugs. His lightsaber made short work of the lock and he lifted the lid to find a stash of Jedi paraphernalia and a bunch of books, some with more locks on the side.
Vader picked out the first of the locked books and examined it. The cover was blank, bearing no witness to whatever may be inside. The DNA lock yielded to a brief burst of concentration with the Force, revealing a half-written journal on Jedi teachings. Vader flicked through the written portion of disgust. So, this is what you were doing in your 'retirement', old man? Collating your lies in the hope of duping another innocent generation? Vader was about to throw down the book and stab the lot of them with his lightsaber when he noticed the letter written on the first leaf.
For Luke, the first line read. Who was Luke?
His curiosity aroused, Vader read through the rest of the letter, realising that the book was written for one particular person - this mysterious Luke, who seemed to be the child of a Jedi. Kenobi's child? Vader dismissed the thought as soon as it occurred - Kenobi had been the model Jedi, never one to form attachments and go against the perfidious Jedi code. Briefly, the memory of Vader's beloved wife, heavy with child, lying still on the landing pad on Mustafar, flashed before his eyes and his anger surged anew at what had been taken from him. Normally he would let that anger run its course but he used his self-control to screw it down tight, bottling it up to release at a more opportune moment. He had a chance here to find this Jedi child and destroy Kenobi's legacy once and for all.
The growing thrum of engines aroused him from his black thoughts. Just as planned. Excellent. He put the book back in the case, picked the case up with the Force and stepped outside to find a sleek, chrome-skinned craft landing on a nearby flat shelf of rock, and the hatch opened to reveal a dark-haired, slim human woman, along with a silver protocol droid and his astromech companion.
The woman strode up to him, a spherical object in one hand. "Find out what you wanted, My Lord?"
"That and more," Vader rumbled in reply, case trailing obediently behind him. "Are you sure there will be no trace of our presence, Doctor?"
"This molecular bomb hasn't failed me before," the doctor replied.
"See to it, then," the Dark Lord remarked, taking the case into the J-Type Nubian yacht and securing it as a brilliant flash filtered in through the cockpit windows. He stepped outside again to find Obi-Wan's former dwelling standing exactly as he had found it.
"All done," the woman remarked cheerfully. "Anything else?" Wordlessly, the Dark Lord proffered a data chip, which the woman took with a curious expression.
"This is all the data we have recovered on the vessel which attacked Jabba's Palace," Vader explained. "I would like an independent opinion of it."
The woman shrugged. "I guess it's not archaeology, but I should be able to tease out something. Usual terms?" A single nod was Vader's only sign of agreement. The woman shrugged again in acknowledgement. "Beetee!" she called out and the twittering astromech turned and moved to intercept her as she headed towards the Nubian yacht, the protocol droid training behind and complaining about there being no-one to torture.
The doctor fed the data card into the astromech before the trio stepped into the yacht, and Vader watched the spacecraft lift off without a flicker of movement, only making his way back to the speeder bike once the Nubian had vanished. Soon, he was immersed in the Force again as he tore through the canyons, this time with a distinct edge of dark pleasure to his mood as he contemplated the upcoming hunt for the young Jedi his old master had sought to hide from him.
"Lord Vader?" the major queried in trepidation. There was no response from the Dark Lord, ensconced as he was in the Mos Eisley Public Records.
Major Arlo sighed and turned away briefly. Lord Vader had a reputation of being…difficult…to work with, to say the least, but he took a bit of personal pride in the fact that none of his command had incurred the Sith Lord's wrath enough to be killed or injured. Still, it was at moments like these where he truly felt stuck between a rock and a hard place.
"Major?" a deep voice rumbled from beside him and it took all of his training not to jump in surprise. Lord Vader loomed above him, only the sound of his respirator giving away the fact that he wasn't a statue. "You have a message for me?"
"Yes, My Lord," Major Arlo managed to answer without stammering. "Grand General Tagge's Star Destroyer has dropped out of hyperspace and is sending a shuttle down to pick you up. Devastation's flight operations estimate arrival within the half-hour."
"How kind of the General," Vader remarked. Major Arlo kept his mouth firmly shut, clearly remembering the simmering rage the Dark Lord had fallen into when Grand General Tagge called away his shuttle following the destruction of the Reprisal, effectively leaving Vader stranded on Tatooine.
"Inform the shuttle that I can be retrieved from this location," Vader continued, handing a data chip to the Major. "Yes sir," Arlo replied as the Dark Lord brushed passed him, his sense of entrapment growing, and he fingered the card absent-mindedly as he wondered how he was going to report Vader's intransigence to the Grand General.
"Major Arlo?" Vader had stopped at the end of the corridor. "Accompany me, Major." Holding in a sigh, the major did as ordered.
They walked together in silence for nearly half a minute before Vader spoke again. "I am impressed with the conduct of the Garrison, Major."
Major Arlo nearly walked into the wall in astonishment, and it took him a while to find his voice. "Thank you very much, My Lord; you flatter us."
"I do not flatter, Major," Vader replied. "I have been most impressed and pleased by the resourcefulness, work ethic and presentation of the Garrison, and I would be as pleased to have the soldiers of your Garrison by my side in battle as I would soldiers from any other of the Emperor's Legions."
Major Arlo said nothing. He wasn't quite sure what would come out of his mouth had he opened it, so he kept silent and basked in the praise of his soldiers.
"By maintaining this work ethic, presentation and professionalism on a world such as Tatooine," Vader continued, "in a city such as Mos Eisley, your Garrison, Major, shows the citizens of the Emperor on this planet that as distant as it may be from Imperial Centre, the Empire's strength, justice and order is still present and powerful. Continue in this vein, Major, and I assure you of a long and fruitful career in the service of the Emperor."
"Lord Vader…" Arlo began to reply, then stopped and chuckled humourlessly. "Permission to speak freely, My Lord?" His only answer was a slight incline of Vader's head.
"My Lord," Arlo began, "I guess the best way to put this is 'your reputation precedes you.' I would have to say that when General Tagge put you in charge of the investigation of the attack on Jabba the Hutt and the Reprisal, with the resources of the Garrison at your, ah, disposal, there was much trepidation within the Garrison. Indeed, when I heard how you assisted my sappers with the scrap pile…well, with respect, Lord Vader, I did wonder whether my troops were speaking about the right person."
"Major, the only people who need to fear me are those who would seek to test the Emperor's will," Vader rumbled in reply. "That includes those who are not competent to perform the role they are assigned." He indicated the chip in the Major's hand. "A commendation of the Garrison to Grand General Tagge is included on that chip, Major. My only advice would be to ensure that it does not go to your head."
Major Arlo finally smiled at Vader. "My Lord, it has been an unexpected pleasure to serve with you over this fortnight. I'll transmit your instructions to the Devestation at once." He came to attention and saluted, which Vader acknowledged with a slight bow of his head before sweeping into the vehicle pool, leaving Major Arlo fingering the message chip once again. Giving Grand General Tagge bad news was normally tricky - but with Darth Vader backing him up? Easiest assignment ever.
Darth Vader stopped the speeder bike over fifty metres away from the homestead, his senses tingling. Something was wrong with the view he was presented with… He called up the after-action report of the stormtrooper squad who had traced the droids to this homestead, which allowed him to quickly realise that someone had visited the homestead very soon after the squad had left - perhaps mere minutes. That could be the only explanation for the two graves off to one side. Even bones were picked off very quickly by Tatooine's scavengers.
Vader stepped off the bike, striding towards the ruined homestead. Whoever buried the remains of Owen and Beru Lars could only have been someone with close connections to them, and Imperial questioning of the inhabitants of nearby Anchorhead had revealed that news of the death of the Lars' had been slow to spread. So that narrowed the gravediggers down to two possible people: Kenobi, or the mysterious Luke.
Vader made his way down into the central well and paused, stretching out with the Force just as he had done in Kenobi's dwelling. This time there was no resistance to his Force probe, and he strode into one of the rooms set off from the well.
The stormtrooper squad had been very thorough in their search for the droids and hadn't seen a need to clean up after trashing the sleeping room. Still, when sifting through the debris, Vader could make out that it was the room of a young boy, on the cusp of manhood…someone who was a keen pilot and mechanic, and who dreamed of life off of Tatooine. What there wasn't, however, was any sign that the boy had any potential in the Force; not even the remains or hints of the Force-sensitive toys that young initiates had been given in the Jedi Temple. Miffed at coming to a dead-end, Vader continued his search in the main sleeping room, then the main living room, before striding out into the central well again, puzzled.
He began to go over what he knew. The records he'd found revealed that his step-brother and step-sister-in-law had a ward named Luke, actual family name unknown; said Luke was known in the area as a brilliant if reckless pilot and a good mechanic, and eager to get away from his aunt and uncle and off of the planet. 'Old Ben' was a known hermit who lived beyond the Dune Sea whom nobody had seen in years. According to the brief interrogation the squad had subjected the Lars' to, Luke had gone off an an errand that morning, the day after they'd purchased the droids.
So. A pair of droids - one astromech, the other very likely a protocol droid - are dropped onto Tatooine from a Rebel cruiser following its capture. Said droids find their way into the possession of the Lars', who are also wards of a boy called Luke, possibly the same Luke that Kenobi had been writing his journals for. The Lars are killed by an investigating stormtrooper squad and are buried, probably by Luke; soon afterwards, the Millennium Falcon blasts its way out of Mos Eisley with Obi-Wan Kenobi, the droids and another young man on board, and the captain and crew rescues Princess Leia. The Millennium Falcon travels to Yavin and the Death Star follows, where a Force-sensitive pilot fires the killing shot. Could this Force-sensitive pilot be Luke 'Lars'?
There was something here he was missing, Vader was sure of it. It was only just out of reach and if he just concentrated…
"Lord Vader!" The shout from the top of the pit derailed his thoughts, and Vader looked up to find Grand General Tagge peering down at him. Wordlessly, Vader turned and made his way to the surface.
"Grand General Tagge," Vader offered by way of greeting as he strode past Tagge towards the shuttle. Caught off-guard, the general had to hurry to catch up with the Dark Lord, something which pleased Vader.
Both Grand General and Dark Lord were silent as the shuttle lifted off. It was only once they had left the atmosphere that the general turned to speak.
"I do hope, Lord Vader," Tagge remarked in a falsely conversational tone, "that your diversion relates to the investigation into the Reprisal's destruction?"
"It relates to investigating potential threats to the Empire," Vader replied. "That was my original reason for coming to this system - to investigate the events leading up to the destruction of the Death Star."
"And what have you found?"
"A possible lead," Vader answered brusquely. "But more work is required."
"You will have to do that work whilst en route to your next assignment," Tagge remarked. "The fact that the Rebels now have the ability to easily defeat Imperial-class Star Destroyers lends new urgency to our efforts to destroy them."
"Indeed."
Silence descended again as the shuttle entered the Devestation's landing bay and touched down. There was a sharp look from the General as both he and Vader rose together from their seats and the mistrustful expression remained even as Vader let the General disembark first, as Imperial protocol dictated for rank precedence. As Vader descended the ramp, he saw that Tagge was waiting for him, back to the shuttle, hands behind his back. He stopped beside the general and they both watched the bustle of the bay for a moment.
"I am sending you to the Candoras sector, Lord Vader, where one of our more…inventive…commanders is stationed," Tagge finally announced. "I believe that he may be able to draw information out of the data you have collected on Tatooine, Lord Vader, much faster than Imperial Intelligence will be able to, and it will probably be more useful."
Tagge turned to face the Dark Lord to emphasise his next statement. "The Empire's situation is growing more dire with each passing week, Vader. More and more systems are reporting rebellions amongst their populations and the Imperial Fleet would be spread too thinly were we to attempt to tackle all the spot-fires at once. We lost the opportunity to destroy the Rebellion at Yavin; we must move quickly to ensure we can grab the next opportunity when it presents itself."
"Be assured, General, that I understand the risk to the Empire the Rebellion currently presents," Vader intoned, "and I will be expending every personal effort to crush these traitors, once and for all." With that pronouncement, he swept off towards the bay exit, leaving the Grand General shaking his head silently at the Sith Lord's dramatics.